The Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra and the famous New Year’s Concert

When and by whom was the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra founded? Where does the annual New Year’s Concert take place and when did it begin? The Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra was born on March 28, 1842, when Kapellmeister Otto Nicolai conducted a “Grand Concert” in the Redoutensaal . It was organized by the “Sämmtliches Orchester Personal des k.k. Court Opera Theatre”. Until then, the city had not had a concert orchestra consisting of professional musicians. Initially it was called the “Philharmonic Academy” and for the first time all the principles of the “Philharmonic Idea”, which is still valid today, were realized.

The most important principle: only an artist engaged in the Vienna State Opera Orchestra could become a member of the Vienna Philharmonic. With the 1870/71 season, the orchestra moved to the Golden Hall of the Musikverein building in Vienna. This proved to be an ideal venue due to its excellent acoustics. Under conductor Hans Richter (subscription conductor from 1883-1898), the orchestra achieved great renown and worked with Anton Bruckner, Johannes Brahms and Richard Wagner .

Johann Strauss son

The first meeting between Johann Strauss son and the Vienna Philharmonic brought the world premiere of the waltz “Wiener Blut”, which Strauss composed for the opera ball of the time in 1873. This took place in the Großer Musikvereinssaal . His last encounter with Strauss was on May 22, 1899 at the Hofoper when he conducted “Die Fledermaus”, contracted pneumonia and died less than two weeks later as a result.

Gustav Mahler was also an important subscription conductor from 1898 to 1901, making international guest appearances. In 1922, the orchestra played at the first opera performances at the Salzburg Festival.

The Vienna New Year’s Concert

The origins of the Vienna New Year’s Concert date back to a dark period in Austria’s history. The Philharmonic Orchestra gave a concert on New Year’s Eve 1939, the net proceeds of which were dedicated to the National Socialist fundraising campaign Kriegswinterhilfswerk (Winter War Relief) and was therefore very ambivalent. From January 1, 1941, the concert was seen as a “genuine Viennese festival of joy” in the midst of the war. It was mainly dedicated to the Strauss dynasty. It was only after the war that the concerts were given the name New Year’s Concert. To this day, the waltz “An der schönen blauen Donau” and the “Radetzky March” are performed as encores at the end of the New Year’s Concert. Many famous conductors have conducted the New Year’s Concert, the longest lasting being Willi Boskovsky , who conducted the concert for 25 years.

Nowadays, the management changes every year. The concert is broadcast in 90 countries worldwide and the approximately 2,000 tickets are allocated through a fair system of raffles.

Time Travel Tip: A guided tour or a concert in the Golden Hall of the Musikverein is highly recommended! More info: Musikverein Image source: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Datei:Ferdinand_Schmutzer_Wiener_Philharmoniker.jpg